Frankie Thaheld, 39

Jennifer Sison, 25

Server and bartender: A.R. Valentien, The Lodge at Torrey Pines

Miguel Valdez, 28

Executive chef: The Red Door Restaurant and Wine Bar and The Wellington Steak and Martini Lounge

A one-time soda jerk at an Orange County diner, Thaheld admits he only pursued bartending as a vehicle for helping finance his real passion, performing in a touring rock band. But a funny thing happened along the way.

He fell in love with mixing drinks and interacting with guests, becoming an educator of sorts in the world of spirits.

“I love to impart knowledge, and I felt the guests could learn to appreciate spirits as more than something to get them intoxicated,” said Thaheld, who spent several years at California Pizza Kitchen as a corporate trainer, waiter and bartender before moving on to George’s at the Cove six years ago.

Having never attended bartender school, Thaheld said he learned on the job and through his training at California Pizza Kitchen. He eschews the showy bartending theatrics of the character played by Tom Cruise in the 1980s film “Cocktail,” choosing instead to focus on the art of mixology. He enjoys reinventing classic cocktails like the Manhattan or crafting new ones incorporating exotic ingredients like caraway, muddled prunes and quail eggs.

“I think here at George’s we were definitely pioneers in West Coast mixology, which is more produce-based cocktails,” he explained. “You’re taking concepts out of the kitchen and bringing them into the bar and finding the right liquors to pair with them. It’s not like at Friday’s, where they’re throwing things and twirling them.”

Best job advice: “Find your favorite bar and pay attention to what the bartender is doing. There’s a difference between a bartender at a dive bar who pours a 3-ounce shot because he wants your tip vs. a bartender who wants to give you an experience.”

Lori Weisberg • U-T

It’s not unusual, Sison admits, for servers to feel a bit trapped in their jobs when they first start because the pay is good and the hours fairly flexible. In her case, she said, she quickly became enamored with waiting tables, feeling as though it was less a job than getting paid to converse with people.

A Chula Vista native, Sison originally sought out a restaurant job to finance her education. She started out hostessing at a Mexican restaurant in Chula Vista, eventually working her way up to waitressing there.

“At that time I was making between $60 and $80 a night in tips and at least $100 on Fridays and Saturdays for a five- to six-hour shift,” she recalled. “At that point, I had decided hospitality was an industry I wanted to stay in. I could make money, and I still enjoyed what I was doing.”

When Sison had the opportunity more than four years ago to advance her career by moving on to the much more upscale Lodge at Torrey Pines, she leapt at the chance, but with some trepidation. Working in fine dining meant higher expectations among customers, who tend to be more devoted foodies, she said.

“I consider myself a very strong server and very knowledgeable, but I found myself doubting my skills,” she recalled. “It’s not something where you can just go up there and wing it.”

By last June, Sison was able to work her way up to the Lodge’s fine dining restaurant, after having been a trainer, bartender and server at The Grill in the hotel. She’s spent hours educating herself about wines and spirits and has become adept at engaging diners to learn what they want from their restaurant visits.

“I’ve seen a significant jump in my earnings year to year,” she said. “That grows with your knowledge and the restaurant you’re in.”

Best job advice: “My advice to that person who went to work at a restaurant just needing to pay for school, I want them to realize what they expect when they go to a restaurant. As a server, you should be able to make the meal one of the best experiences (the customer) can have.”

The son of a heroin addict and a mother who worked multiple jobs to support her six children, Valdez admits he didn’t cook much growing up in Logan Heights because his sisters would poke fun at him, saying his food was inedible. It was while he was living in Pennsylvania and working as a dishwasher at a gourmet grocery store that he started thinking about the notion of becoming a professional cook. He met some chefs who were insistent on teaching him how to cook and equally adamant that he attend culinary school.

“I couldn’t go to school,” said Valdez. “I’d be having to pay it off for so long.”

Instead, after moving to San Diego with his then-girlfriend, now wife, he pursued a job at a Little Italy pizzeria, putting in 12-hour shifts rolling out dough and also preparing sushi at a place across the street. He later moved on to the Glass Door in the Porto Vista Hotel and after that Anthology, where he was schooled in preparing sauces, stocks and how to braise and grill.

All the while he was working two jobs and always feeling worn out.

After getting a job at The Red Door in Mission Hills, he worked his way up quickly from line cook to sous chef and just a few months ago to executive chef for Red Door and its sister restaurant, The Wellington.

“I was trying to prove to them I could take care of this restaurant, and they gave me the opportunity to be the executive chef,” a grateful Valdez said.

Best job advice: “Keep pushing, try different places and start at the bottom and work your way up. Not everyone needs to go to school. Try approaching chefs at different restaurants. Don’t ask for work; ask if they need help. They’ll teach you what they know.”